Miners swell rebel ranks in east Ukraine as pits close

DONETSK, Ukraine/MOSCOW (Reuters) - Even at the age of 52, retired coalminer Viktor felt compelled to come out of retirement and join the pro-Russian separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine.

He sympathized with the many miners who have laid down their tools and taken up arms against government forces, either because of their political beliefs or because they lost their jobs when their pits closed during the conflict, leaving Ukraine in need of imported coal and raising the prospect of p...